Well that was awful. A bad effort against a bad team in a bad hockey market on a bad ice surface. It’s three hours you won’t be getting back.
The Hawks have not shaken their incredibly annoying habit of playing to their competition. On a night where we all knew the Preds were going to do their utmost to keep things tight, the Hawks insisted on trying to beat 11 guys at the line on what was probably a warm slurpee of an ice surface. When the Hawks did manage to figure out to get it in deep, they didn’t seem all that interested in outworking the Preds. Thankfully, Huet kept them around the whole game where they still should have gotten something out of it.
Obviously, this game was lost on the power play, and hopefully the abortion of a performance will cause the changes that seem so necessary. First off, get Bolland or Sharp off the point. Neither has a skill set that would suggest they can do a job back there. If you’re looking for a booming shot, put Buff back there. If you need a handler or distributor, as weird as it sounds, Kris Versteeg would actually be your best bet right now. But neither of those is necessary. Keith, Seabrook, Barker, and Campbell should provided everything the power play needs from the points. Now, why it Tomas Kopecky on with the man-advantage? Why is he on the ice at all? If anyone can explain what he does well, I’ll buy you a coke. Oh, and the one guy who’s scored a power play goal recently, Troy Brouwer, didn’t get any time. Awesome.
Aside from the 3rd against the Wild, and maybe a period against the Preds at home, when was the last time this team looked really good? It’s hard to complain about 7-4-1, especially when you’re two best all-around forwards have missed time. But there have definitely been some points gone to waste, and you never know when that might come back to haunt you. Luckily, the Habs might be just what the doctor ordered.
Player Of The Game
Look in a mirror. It’s you, for surviving watching that drech. Night.